Tuesday, May 28, 2013

Anti-Graffiti Drones Beginning in Germany

In LA, to find out what a street artist is doing, in large part, all you have to do is join Facebook. The world of social media has sure made a strange new world where many street artists and graffiti heads posting personal details that would have been unheard of only a few short years ago. But in other areas of the world, graffiti is still a serious business. Germany is one of the most active street art and graffiti spots in the world, and it is a place where the artists try to stay anonymous and the authorities try to catch them. And now, Germany plans to start using drones to find the artists.

The BBC News is reporting that Germany plans to start using anti-graffiti drones to gather evidence which could be used to prosecute perceived criminals. The infrared drones plan to hover high above the ground and will be virtually sightless and soundless.

In the past, drones have not been allowed in public airspace because they violate privacy concerns. But in Germany, the railways are run by a private company, so that issue might be moot. The bigger issue is this is the first documented large-scale usage of domestic drones in an industrialized country, and the drone, which is weapon of war, has trained its first aim at the street art and graffiti community.